The Nuclear Option Ch. 03

"That burner phone rang a few days later." said Just. "The voice on the other end said his name was Jerry, and he wanted me to meet him at a restaurant nearby. I did, but when I got there, he had me get in his car with him, and he drove me to a meeting in an office in an empty strip mall. Trent Ridge was there, and I was introduced to the man Paco Domingo, who I could tell was a no-shit bad character." I nodded.

Just continued: "They told me that $100,000 would be wired to my City & Counties Bank account in the City, which was the first time I knew I had such an account. Westboro had set it up years before, laundered money through it, and had left $4000 in it. And then they told me what they wanted me to do: give them all the information on the TECC's tracking codes, all the other ELINT info on transporting nuclear weapons, and the satellite flyover times."

"At first, I refused to do it." Just said. "Then Barsbane started talking to me. He's got a charm to him; you can't help but like him. He told me that they were going to steal the nuke for ransom, and that no one would get hurt as long as everyone cooperated. They said it would be millions for all of us, and that I could retire somewhere where I'd never have to deal with Affirmative Action again. I knew I was dead if I didn't go with it, so I did."

"I gave them everything I could get, and I made sure that Paco Domingo's team was assigned to the followup car detail." Just said. "Barsbane handled the railroad parts of it; he knew far more about that stuff than I ever did. And so it went. And it went very well, for the most part... until that bastard Burke refused to give us the Mutanix."

"From that point on, everything got real dicey." went on Just. "I started thinking about a way out, any way out, especially after General McFarland wouldn't let me be the delivery man for the Mutanix. That completely killed my escape plans. But even then, I had a plan to miraculously find the weapon and get it defused... until the General let you go in there. Craziest plan I ever heard of."

"You got that right." Laura said with alacrity, and acerbity, peering hard at me.

"It worked, though." said General McFarland. "By the hair of our chinny-chin-chins, but it worked."

"Interesting narrative." I said, to Just. "And I believe it, most of it, anyway. But you do realize, General Just, that they very likely were going to kill you, don't you?"

I saw the look in his eyes. "Ahhh..." I said. "You were not going to pick them up, were you? You were going to take the Mutanix, but not go to the BigAgraFoods warehouse. You were going to high-tail it out of this County, maybe tell the M.P.s at the County line that you were going to Valley Villages, and just skedaddle on out of here. Weren't you?"

MG Just just looked at me, his eyes becoming jet as he said: "Yeah, I knew that my life was forfeit once they had the Mutanix, and that I'd be a 'loose end' for them to clean up. So I was going to leave, then contact the command post through the email and tell them where the weapon was, and hoped the SEALs could recover the weapon and kill everyone in the trailer before they could set it off."

"Oh, come on." Laura said. "I don't need my husband's powers to see that you're full of shit on that. If they captured Shimono and Barsbane alive, they'd tell us that it was you that was behind this! You needed for them to die, and you expected they would detonate the bomb. Then the Army and the world would've believed you had died in the blast, and you could go off to whatever retirement you'd set up for yourself."

"She's right, you know." I said. "She's good. Glad I married her."

"You're still sleeping on the couch tonight, mister." Laura replied, making Muscone chuckle.

General McFarland said "Well, guys, I know you won't be surprised when I tell you that we're taking Just into military custody."

"No sir, you are not."

We all looked up at the voice that had said that. Walking into the Interrogation Room was the retired Deputy Director of the FBI, followed by our local FBI Resident Agency Supervisory Agent, Melina Troy Allgood.

"Director Hargreaves!" said the General, some respect in his voice. "We did not expect to see you here.

"I'm sure you didn't." said the DepDirector. "And General Just will remain in the FBI's custody unless and until the Federal Judge gives him to you." The General quickly conceded the point.

"So where did Shimono and Barsbane go?" asked the General, to Just.

"I don't know, sir." said Just. "The plan was to drive to the City, and hand over the Mutanix at an abandoned strip mall near the airport. With 20/20 hindsight, we probably wouldn't have survived it, or at least I wouldn't have. But where Barsbane and Shimono went, I don't know."

"Commander Troy? Any ideas?" asked the General.

I nodded. "Mr. Muscone has been acting upon some small ideas I've had, based upon the DEA's previous work. We'll see if they pan out. In the meantime, I have two more questions for General Just, if you and the FBI Deputy Director don't mind."

"Fire away." said GEN McFarland. The DepDirector nodded.

"First, what about Trent and Quint?" I asked Just. "Where are they now?"

"I have no idea." said Just. "They were supposed to take out the truck crew, which they apparently did. After that, I have no clue at all. Maybe Shimono killed them. You mentioned some guy named 'Raji', that I had not have heard of. Maybe she had a team to wipe out the followup team. I don't know; apparently they kept me in the dark about a lot of that."

"And second," I said, "why did you bring 'The Geek' here?"

"Who's that?" asked McFarland... just a little too quickly, I might add.

"The computer geek that was in your office this morning." I said.

"I didn't bring him in." said Just.

"Neither did I." said McFarland. "Shit, we better find out who did, and where that punk went..."

Part 18 - After-Actions

12:00 high noon, Saturday, March 9th. General Just had been escorted out of my Headquarters by FBI Special Agents, including Martin Nash and Julius Jefferson. I would not see him again, as he took a plea deal and cooperated in exchange for no treason charges and something better than Ft. Leavenworth.

I was becoming exhausted from the on-camera depositions I'd been giving to everyone from the Town & County Public Safety Inspector General's Office to the SBI-OER (conducted by Lt. Norm Chow) to FBI, Homeland Security, and Army CID Agents. Jack Muscone came to my rescue and made them let him take me to the Cop Bar for lunch. To my surprise, Laura joined us.

We sat in the small 'Command Room' in the back left corner of the building, and had the room to ourselves. I was ravenously hungry and had two double-Breakfast-Burgers (double cheeseburgers with a fried egg and bacon on top). Pops, the owner of the Cop Bar, said my meal was 'on the house' after my actions of the morning. Now how did he know what those actions were? I thought to myself. Jack Muscone insisted on paying for everything, saying he could comp it and let the taxpayers of the nation pay the bill...

Laura had a steak Caesar salad, which she said was the best she'd had in a long, long time. You get one guess what Jack Muscone had for lunch. He was famished, as well, and finished his two double cheeseburgers before I finished my first Breakfast Burger.

"I have two questions in all of this." Laura said quietly. "First, why didn't you suspect General McFarland? It could as easily have been him as General Just."

"That's true. Very true." I said. "And I also considered that they were both in on it, together. McFarland could've ordered Just to make the Southport raid, and he certainly could've gotten and given out the information that Just did."

"But I eliminated McFarland for several reasons." I continued. "First, from the very first post-announcement meeting at Valley Villages, he was intent on, and focused on, finding the weapon. My gut, which Cindy and Carole would call a 'vibe', told me that he was sincere in that, and not being an Academy-Award-winning actor. My second reason was that he came to our Town & County here instead of staying in the relative safety of Valley Villages. I thought there was no way he'd do that if he was involved, and especially if he knew where the weapon was coming to."

"But Just stayed up here, too." Jack said.

"Yes, and at first blush, one would think that if he were in on it, McFarland would stay up here for the same reasons Just did." I said. "But I also reasoned that McFarland, as a four-star general, simply could not leave without an entourage following him. General Just might just have the Second Lieutenant following him around, who would be easy enough to get away from... or kill. So I thought it reasonable, though not certain, that if he were guilty, McFarland would stay in Valley Villages instead of where the nuke was."

"I might also add," I said, "that if McFarland was guilty, he would not let me hang around. And he certainly would not have let me go deliver the fake Mutanix to the perps."

"Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer." said Laura.

"See Jack?" I quipped. "She's angling for Jimmy Cerone's old job." Muscone laughed. Laura managed an indulgent, condescending smile.

"No, I get it." I said. "But at no time did McFarland ever give me reason to think he was involved. Just, on the other hand, might as well have been wearing a neon sign saying 'It's me!'. So, Laura, what was your second question?"

"Similar to the first question." Laura said. "I told you that General McFarland was and is one of the Elites in Washington, that he's no friend of of the friends of the Guardians of Justice, he and Admiral Keating clashed bitterly at times, and if anyone is in bed with Edward Blassingame, Establishment-wise, it would be McFarland. So why did you tell him as much as you did about how much you know about the Elites, and your battles with them."

"Well..." I said, "first of all, he knows already. He knew who I was from the first moment Jack mentioned my name to him at Valley Villages. And like you just said, he kept his enemy closer, that being me. Second, I wanted him to be extremely aware of me and what I know. I was watching his, McFarland's, reactions and facial expressions as I discussed that stuff. And while I'm not the best psychologist at this table, much less in the world, I could see that it wasn't fazing him. He may not even be one of the Mitt-Willis-Superior-Bloodlines Elites. I can't say the same about Carl Just... nor Edward Blassingame."

"Yes." said Muscone. "We'll be having a conversation with him, though under the guise of getting background information on Dick Granger. Speaking of Granger, we're quietly trying to find him. No big public APBs, at least not yet."

"Good." I said. "And if I don't miss my guess, you might pick up Jerry Barsbane when you do find Granger. I hope that's the case, as it will really show the SPS connection to all this."

"That was my next question." said Muscone. "Where can we find these perps? I know you didn't have much choice in letting them get away, being handcuffed to an armed nuclear bomb and all, but do you have any idea where they might've gone to? And also... I noticed in all of this that you were really keen on finding out where Trent and Quint went. You really want to find them, and I'm wondering why you consider them so important?"

"See, Laura?" I said. "He really is good at observation and deduction. Four hundred years ago..." That made Laura smile, and even Jack smiled a little bit. And we all knew that Jack Muscone was very good at observation and deduction.

"Yes." I said. "I am very worried about Trent and Quint, and on a personal level. Their buddy Paco went over a cliff, thanks to me and some courageous kids. Their skill sets are close quarters combat and violent means to achieve their objectives. They can easily crop up somewhere and cause us a lot of problems, as in people getting killed."

"Do we know that they're still alive?" asked Laura. "Once the weapon was secured, I can see Shimono killing them off if they were expendable."

"She could never get the drop on them; they'd be way too aware." I said. "No, once they did their part, attacking the truck crew and taking possession of the nuclear device, I think they got out of there while the getting was good. They may have blended into the railroad crews at the Hammondsville Railyards, and made their way out of there and to parts unknown."

"We also don't know who else might've been involved in this." I said. "General Just didn't even know who 'Raji' was, or so he claims. We know 'Raji' exists because his body is in our morgue, courtesy of me breaking his worthless neck, but I have no idea who he is nor what he's about."

"He was the computer guy for them." said Muscone. "He graduated from M.I.T. a few years ago, top of his class. Like many Indians, he was an anti-colonialist. But we think he went further and became a radical Socialist, and maybe turned to Islam and Radical Jihad. We do know he lost his first job because he couldn't get a Top Secret security clearance, and we haven't found much on him since."

"You've got some long hours ahead of you in the next few days, Jack." I said. "I don't envy you a bit."

"Yes," said Jack, "but it's times like these that I am very grateful that I'm not in Washington."

"And someone brought the retired FBI Deputy Director back in, I noticed." I said, glancing over at my lovely wife.

"Wasn't me." Laura said. "The CIA has asked me for an after-action report of everything I've seen and heard, but beyond that, my hands are washed of this matter. I just want to pick up our children, and go home."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Ah yes... the children. Whatever happened to them? And in a very related question, why have we not heard from CIA Agent 'Honeybee' the past couple of days?

A procession of TCPD Police vehicles, including one large van, made its way down to 'The Vision' compound in Coltrane County. We were allowed inside the gates, and at the front entrance to the main building we were greeted enthusiastically by happy Vision acolytes. Commander Cindy Ross was greeted especially warmly, as she was the daughter of The Vision's founder and great leader, Dr. P. Harvey Eckhart.

The procession included me, Laura, Teresa, Molly Evans, Paulina Patterson, Daniel Allgood, Stephanie Steele, and Cindy. We went inside and to the main elevator, where Dr. Eckhart's assistant Tommy punched in the code, which I'd memorized and observed it to be unchanged for years. The elevator ascended to the top floor, to Dr. Eckhart's main office.

"DADDY!" exclaimed a voice as I got off the elevator. It belonged to my daughter Carole, who had been sitting next to Dr. Eckhart on one of the two sofas that faced each other in the middle of the large room. Upon seeing me, she hopped off the sofa and ran at the top her her speed up to me. I did not let back pain stop me from bending over and scooping her up for a big hug.

"Hi, Fussbudget." I said. "Have you been a good girl for Uncle Harvey?"

"Yes, Daddy." Carole said. "And Murrree and I, and Jennn-i-fer and Tifff-any have been helping take care of my brothers and sisters, too."

"That's good." I said. "Here. Give your mom a big hug." I handed Carole to Laura, who gave her daughter a big hug, and I noticed that Carole's hug was slightly less than enthusiastic.

Also in the room were Marie, Jim, Ross, Ian, Pete Feeley, Jennifer and Tiffany Muscone, Tasha, Doug Burke, little Jack Burke, little Michael Burke, and little Dan and Patricia Allgood. And Betsy Ross, of course. They were being supervised by Callie Carrington, Dr. Eckhart, and the redoubtable Bowser and Buddy.

"Hi guys!" said Callie Carrington, who was holding Betsy. Cindy had gone up to her and exchanged hugs, and Betsy had reached out for Cindy, who took her baby into her arms for a big hug.

"Daddy," Carole said, "Uncle Har-vey has been teaching me how to clear my mind."

"And she has been a wonderful student." Dr. Eckhart said. "She has a brilliant mind, which will serve her well as she learns to harness its power, and tame its weaknesses."

"So how do you clear your mind, Carole?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Uncle Har-vey says to just think of nothing." said Carole. "He says to concentrate on my breath-ing. And when I did one time, I saw you in 'meetings' with some bad guys. Why did you go to 'meetings' with bad guys, Daddy?"

I smiled wanly. "Sometimes we have to meet with people to get things done. Isn't that right?" I said. Carole nodded (not very agreeably, but she nodded) and I said "But fortunately I was able to draw the business to a good conclusion for us."

"With Aunt Melina's help?" Carole said.

"Uh, yes, as a matter of fact your Aunt Melina helped a lot." I said. I did not even bother to ask how Carole knew that.

"Yes, she did." said Laura, which I knew was more than just an admission of Carole's question. Was the rift healed? I wondered.

"Did you save the world again, Daddy?" Carole asked, to everyone surprise.

"Well..." I said, "maybe this little corner of it."

Yeah, modesty is a human trait, and I did not tax Carole to excuse it... nor would she have.

"See, Murree?" said Carole, to her friend Marie. "That's why Daddy is my hero." Yes, Daddy's heart was melted again.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"I can't thank you enough for keeping the kids safe, Uncle Harvey." I said.

"It was an absolute joy having all these young children here." said Dr. Eckhart. "Especially young Carole, and of course my new granddaughter Betsy. By the way, young Donald, might I have a private word with you?"

We went into a small room at the far (south) end of the large room, near where Eleanor Burke and I had received our programming in the past. (Author's note: 'Trilogy: The Dawn's Early Light'.).

"I know you've been more than busy the past two days, young Donald." said Eckhart as we sat down in chairs the small room. "So you might not have heard what is going on with the Press, regarding my daughter and granddaughter." He used a remote to turn on a television monitor, and we spent the next few minutes watching Bettina and Amber's vicious attacks upon Cindy and Betsy. Needless to say, I was 'less than pleased' with what I was seeing.

"Just to make sure," I said, "you've given DFACS no money? None at all?"

"No, young Donald." said Eckhart. "They're a Government agency, anyway, but if I did provide something that could help them, no Detective on earth could trace it, not even the one in this room with me now."

I smiled. "Not that I would care to try. I'll delegate that case to Bowser." I said. "So... there are two ways I can think of to solve this problem." I told my uncle the two ways. "Anything I missed?"

"No, and I like your first idea there better than any I'd come up with." said Eckhart. "But do be careful about young Cindy. I'm sensing more emotion from her about this than at any time since the night you revealed to her that I am her father." (Author's note: 'Reichenbach', Ch. 05.) I nodded, deep in thought. When I came out of it, I felt as well as saw Dr. Eckhart watching me, studying what an Iron Crowbar reverie looked and felt like...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The kids and adults, led by one Carole Diana Troy, walked through the gauntlet of happy Vision acolytes as we left the building, high-fiving them as they wished us well. We piled into the vehicles for the ride home.

Yes, when I'd visited Police Headquarters the day before, I had arranged for my kids and Marie and the dogs, my Angels's kids, and Daniel and Melina's kids to be spirited out of the County and out of harm's way, to the Vision compound where they would be as safe as any possible place. I had feared that McFarland or Just, or maybe Trent and Quint, might try to use our children as chess pieces in their games, including possibly as hostages.